Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. On a side note, I haven't played it in a while, so forgive any inconsistencies.
VampireWizard… thanks for your review, but so long as the Pokémon was part Ghost, Rattata would be hard pressed to hit it; after all, Gastly's a Ghost and Poison Pokémon, yet normal attacks can't affect its poison side.
Dragon Master Cohl… don't think I've got many of your reviews before… thanks for your advice; though I kinda assumed Dark was a physical damage thing… goes back to something in Pokémon Crystal which happened when my Umbreon used Pursuit… anyways here I'm assuming the best counter for an attack; I mean, I don't see how Mirror Coat would work on a Bite attack, in real life. Thanks for the advice though; yeah, Erynn has an Oddish; I've got to find a way to keep track of the Pokémon they have… I'll change it the instant I get a chance. Thanks for that, too.
And I'm sorry if I portrayed Michelle as a little too arrogant; she isn't, really. She just is very much a closet pessimist; sort of a balance… I guess, to the optimism most others have. I hope WickedWolf09 would agree…
Anyways, I've only got two hours left… I'm getting more of that, aren't I? So… Pokémon Go! chapter 24… commencing!
The two Pokémon appeared in a flash of red light. Dave gritted his teeth as the creature began its attack.
That Pokémon… it's remarkably strong…
RJ tensed as the Spectropus lashed out with a ghostly tendril; like any normal Octillery, it had eight such arms, and it struck out with all of them in quick succession, hitting with deadly precision. Dave barely had time to order his Pokémon to dodge when they connected; Omanyte's hard shell protected it from the worst of the attack, but Weedle was hit head on.
"Weedle…! Counterattack with a Poison Sting…! Omanyte, follow up with a…"
Dave turned to RJ, who sighed and spoke.
"Omanyte only knows Withdraw, Constrict, and Bite, and Water Gun."
Dave nodded, turning back as Weedle released its Poison Sting attack; the needles sailed through the air, as the Spectropus raised a tendril to defend itself. As the stings entered the concentrated spirit-energy, it slowed, but didn't stop. With a wave of its tendrils, the stings lost their momentum, falling harmlessly into the water. The tendrils snaked out again, Weedle only just managing to dodge it this time.
"Ugh… let's try that again…! Weedle; Poison Sting; Omanyte; support them with a Water Gun!"
The small yellow worm released another stream of needles; as again, the creature raised a tendril to defend itself. As Dave nodded, Omanyte released a powerful jet of water, knocking the arm aside. In an instant, the needles were through, sending the creature a few feet back under its impact.
Halting its fall, the Spectropus shook itself out of the daze, rushing back at the two Pokémon. Even as its tendrils grabbed Weedle and lifted it into the air, it released a Shadow Ball attack straight at Omanyte.
"Withdraw…!"
Omanyte withdrew into its shell as the Shadow Ball impacted. The Pokémon was knocked back into the wall, but was otherwise left unharmed. In a swift motion, the Spectropus had returned to its position in the middle of the lake. Its long tendrils floated eerily in the empty air; two tendrils wrapped tightly around Weedle, otherwise they were free.
"A Constrict attack… Weedle; fire Poison Stings into the Spectropus's eyes!"
Even as the Constrict took hold, Weedle managed to fire off a weak stream of poison needles; its captor had no time to defend itself as the attack ripped through the empty eye sockets; the creature made a hoarse rattling sound and flung Weedle at the rock wall.
"String Shot! Go!"
Weedle managed to fire a series of String Shots which cushioned its landing. Dazed, it watched as the Spectropus shuddered. Dave smiled grimly; the Octillery was merely an outer body; under that, it was entirely vulnerable.
The Hollow Shell Pokémon, eh…
"Omanyte; Weedle! Go for the eyes!"
Inspired by the discovery of its weakness, both Pokémon renewed their attacks. The two attacks shot forward parallel to one another; Spectropus lashed out with its ghost tendrils, but only managed to slow the two slightly. As it was thrown back against the wall again, it fired a Shadow Ball attack at them.
"Dodge…!"
Dave jumped to a side as the ball hurtled past them, impacting and diffusing as it drove straight into the wall behind them.
RJ could do naught but watch as the battle raged on; there was nothing he could do to help when it came to a battle between a trainer and a Pokémon. The blue light washed over the entire field, bringing a subtly eerie touch to the setting. It undulated; moving almost in tandem with the creature's long, floating tendrils.
"Omanyte; Constrict that Spectropus so Weedle can just get a good hit…!"
Omanyte understood, jumping forward to comply. Jumping, its tiny tentacles latched onto the creature, elongating and whipping around its…
What…?
And all of a sudden, Omanyte fell through into the water. Luckily, it was used to the freezing temperatures, and remained in it, for the time being. Dave slapped his head at his carelessness.
"Constrict's a Normal attack… Omanyte! Water Gun from below!"
Omanyte's attack was strengthened by the water it could draw its strength from, all around it. The force of the blow hit the enemy hard enough to send it flying to a side, entirely out of whack. It turned to counterattack…
"Weedle! String Shot!"
The little worm reared up and released a short burst of web; the attack did little but irritate the Pokémon, slowing it slightly; but it distracted it for long enough to allow Omanyte to get out of range of its attacks. Noticing this, the creature rattled again; but it was different this time. This time, the chill rattling was not one of pain…
He watched for a second as the Spectropus lowered its tendrils into the water; it was too far to possibly do anything but…
RJ watched everything happen as well, and with a sinking feeling, he realized he knew what was going to happen.
"Omanyte; get out of the water, now!"
Dave turned to RJ, and then looked back. But Omanyte seemed trapped; somehow, no matter how hard it tried to leave the water, it kept getting pulled back in. Dave looked around Omanyte; none of the tendrils were anywhere near it… in fact… they all seemed concentrated in the exact center of the water body…
"Oh… no… Omanyte; hurry and withdraw!"
Omanyte complied, tucking itself into its shell. A moment later, it collided with the rocks which lined the sides of the large body of water. Had it not been withdrawn, it might've been smashed to pieces. Instead, it continued its movement, circling… circling…
"It's a Whirlpool attack…!"
Dave and RJ could do naught but watch in awe as the small ripples the Spectropus had generated with its tendrils formed massive waves which entirely altered the flow of the water. In seconds, the Pokémon was almost entirely encased in a wall of water as the whirlpool rose high above it; Dave pulled Weedle back as waves crashed against the side of the pool; the wall reflected the phosphor beautifully, so it formed a large pillar of light…
"Weedle…! String Shot…!"
The attack subsided as Weedle's attack managed to entangle two of the Pokémon's tendrils. Waves crashed against the walls one final time before settling back into place.
Dave pulled Weedle's string taut, waiting till Omanyte had returned before issuing his next command.
"Now… let's do it! Weedle; Poison Sting! Omanyte, Water Gun!"
Dave held the weakened Pokémon in place as the two attacks rushed toward it; with nothing in the way, the Pokémon was hit by the two attacks, sending it flying back once more. This time, it didn't stop.
Dave tossed the Pokéball; once, twice it shook. Then it stopped.
"And… match."
Ash returned from the washroom a few minutes later, muttering about how some Dittos had no common sense. Walking back into the room, he was surprised to see Michelle gone, while Erynn was finishing her meal.
"She's gone already…?"
Erynn nodded, leaving the room to have her rubbish thrown away. Tired, Ash plonked down on the bunk with Ditto.
"So… what did you think of that girl…?"
Ditto thought for a moment, before transforming into a particularly frightening picture of a Manectric. Ash stared blankly at it, nodding slowly.
"Yeah… besides the Manectric…"
"… She was far too… dark… for my liking… Dit…"
Ash shrugged.
"If you think about it, though… her dark predictions are pretty funny, if you know what I mean".
Ditto shook its head vehemently.
"Not when it's my life she's talking about…"
Ash looked seriously at Ditto.
"You know… I'm seriously beginning to wonder…"
Ditto looked back at him just as seriously. Which was something that came naturally to Dittos. They just copied.
"Why in Jirachi's name you'd allowed yourself to be pulled into this?"
"… Why in Jirachi's name I'd allowed myself to be pulled into this."
Ditto sighed happily and shook its head.
"And to think… that I'd have to tag along with you as well… now that's the worst luck in the world…"
Erynn walked back into the room. Ash quickly sat up. Ditto did the same.
"Hey… Erynn…?"
Erynn sat on the bunk across from his, her look, questioning; both of them occupied the top bunks, with Ditto inexplicably on her side again. Ash opened his mouth, hesitated, and then finally remembered what he was going to say.
"What… what do you think about Michelle…?"
She looked at him, thrown by the question.
"What do you mean…?"
He shrugged, trying hard not to make eye contact. Somehow, though, his eyes kept meeting hers, in the uncomfortable way he wished it didn't.
"I mean… any general impression of her…? I mean… we've only known her for a day and all, but…"
Erynn tilted her head to a side, thinking.
"I guess… she has her quirks… of course her pessimism we all know… but I think she's a good trainer and a pretty nice friend to have…"
Ash nodded; he couldn't deny that, though he didn't have much of an experience of his own. All of a sudden, Erynn frowned.
"… Only known her for a day…? The two of us barely even knew each other when we first started this journey…"
Ash shrugged, nodding his head with his hands in a gesture of submission.
"You're right, I guess. There really isn't much point in worrying about all of that now, anyway. Everyone's entitled to their quirks, I guess…"
Erynn nodded; satisfied.
It was at this moment that Dave and RJ returned.
"Where've you all been the whole day…?" Ash asked first.
Dave grinned as he detached a Pokéball from his belt.
"Lake Baria… and you won't believe what I've caught…"
Spectropus appeared, startling Ash and Erynn both.
"This… a Ghost Pokémon…?"
Dave nodded.
"And RJ caught a Stalac, as well. So our day wasn't a complete waste… yours?"
Ash groaned and lay on his bed.
"Don't bother asking…"
Erynn hardly batted an eye as she took up the narrative. Dave and RJ listened for a few minutes, and then turned to Ash.
"Let's hear your version of the events…"
Ash sighed, rolling over.
"To put a long story short, we met another girl today; she beat me in a one-on-one battle, and is joining us on our way tomorrow."
This time, RJ and Dave nodded.
"Thanks for the translation," RJ added, as the two ran out before Oddish's Stun Spore was released. Sighing, Erynn walked slowly back into her room.
Ash twitched; he was entirely immobile. Erynn gasped and helped apply some Paralysis Heals which she kept in her backpack. When he was finally able to move, he heaved a sigh of relief and hurriedly brushed Erynn's hands off of him.
"Erynn… you really need to control your impulses…"
Erynn glared adamant.
"I don't have any uncontrollable impulses…"
Ash raised an eyebrow.
"You mean; besides Shopping, Attacking Someone, Shopping, Shopping, Attacking Someone, Attacking Someone, Shopping, and Attacking me…?"
Erynn blushed, but just a little; her impulses did seem quite obvious, put that way.
"It's… I can't really help it, can I?"
Ash laughed, sitting up and looking across at her.
"If you could; the impulses wouldn't be uncontrollable…"
The laughter grew silent; soon, they were both asleep.
"Hey… Ash…!"
The voice was heard from outside the room. He blearily sat up in bed and stared across to the doorway. Dave and RJ were whispering to him.
"Is the coast clear yet…?"
Ash slapped his forehead, deciding to fall back into the Land of Nod in response.
Girls… troublesome; every one of them.
A/N: Another chapter complete! I do not discriminate against girls, so don't blame me. While this chapter was pretty short, I hope you enjoyed it, because I'm really, really sleepy right now… if I've got any other errors feel free to point them out… because I can't… keep… awake….
Oh, yeah. Please review.
Zzz.